Information processing apparatus, camera control method, program, camera apparatus, and image processing system

ABSTRACT

A technique for reducing a work load during introduction of a system in the system processing an image generated by a camera. An information processing apparatus includes at least an accumulation unit, a recommended setting determination unit, and a camera control unit. The accumulation unit accumulates a score obtained through an authentication process using an image in which a person is captured and a camera setting at which a camera generates the image in a storage area. The recommended setting determination unit determines a recommended setting for the camera on the basis of a correspondence relationship between the score and the camera setting. The camera control unit controls the camera on the basis of the recommended setting.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/828,523 filed on Mar. 24, 2020 which is based on Japanese patentapplication No. 2019-056446, the contents of which are incorporatedhereinto by reference.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, acamera control method, a program, a camera apparatus, and an imageprocessing system.

Related Art

Re-publication of PCT International Publication No. WO2014/002398discloses a technique of calculating a value indicating evaluation of astate (a position, a posture, or the like) of a camera generating animage from the viewpoint of how well an object (a person or the like)appears in the image in a state suitable for image processing.Specifically, Re-publication of PCT International Publication No.WO2014/002398 discloses a technique of calculating an evaluation valueindicating whether or not a state (camera parameter) of the currentcamera is suitable for image processing on the basis of (1) a resolutionof a target object in an image, (2) a gazing point angle to the targetobject (an angle formed between a straight line connecting a cameraposition to a gazing point position in the target object and a groundsurface), and (3) the degree to which a target region (a region in areal space imaged by the camera) overlaps a target object view region (aregion in a real space in which a target object model is included in animage).

SUMMARY

In a system performing an authentication process or the like forauthenticating a person by using an image of the person, a setting of acamera is one of principal factors for determining the accuracy of apersonal authentication process. In a case where the setting of thecamera is not suitable, the accuracy of an authentication process usingan image generated by the camera is reduced. Thus, it is necessary toadjust a setting of a camera to be optimized at the time of introducingthe system, but the adjustment work requires considerable time andeffort.

The present invention has been made in light of the problem. One of theobjects of the present invention is to provide a technique of reducing awork load during introduction of a system in the system processing animage generated by a camera.

In one embodiment, there is provided an information processing apparatusincluding an accumulation unit that accumulates a score obtained throughan authentication process using an image in which a person is capturedand a camera setting at which a camera generates the image in a storagearea; a recommended setting determination unit that determines arecommended setting for the camera on the basis of a correspondencerelationship between the score and the camera setting; and a cameracontrol unit that controls the camera on the basis of the recommendedsetting.

In another embodiment, there is provided a camera control methodincluding causing a computer to accumulate a score obtained through anauthentication process on a person captured in an image and a camerasetting at which a camera generates the image in a storage area,determine a recommended setting for the camera on the basis of acorrespondence relationship between the score and the camera settingaccumulated in the storage area, and control the camera on the basis ofthe recommended setting.

In still another embodiment, there is provided a program causing acomputer to execute the camera control method.

In still another embodiment, there is provided a camera including atransmission unit that transmits an image in which a person is capturedand a camera setting at which the camera generates the image to anexternal apparatus; and a setting changing unit that acquiresrecommended setting information indicating a camera setting recommendedin a case where the camera generates an image from the externalapparatus, and changes the camera setting for the camera on the basis ofthe recommended setting information.

In still another embodiment, there is provided an image processingsystem including a camera that generates an image in which a person iscaptured while changing a camera setting; an authentication unit thatexecutes an authentication process by using the image; an accumulationunit that accumulates a score obtained through the authenticationprocess and a camera setting at which the camera generates the image ina storage area; a recommended setting determination unit that determinesa recommended setting for the camera on the basis of a correspondencerelationship between the score and the camera setting accumulated in thestorage area; and a camera control unit that controls the camera on thebasis of the recommended setting.

According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce a work loadduring introduction of a system in the system processing an imagegenerated by a camera.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, advantages and features of the presentinvention will be more apparent from the following description ofcertain preferred example embodiments taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram exemplifying a configuration of an image processingsystem of a first example embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram exemplifying a hardware configuration of aninformation processing apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram exemplifying a hardware configuration of acamera;

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram exemplifying a flow of a process executedby the image processing system of the first example embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a database that stores aresult of an authentication process in correlation with a camerasetting;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating another example of a database thatstores a result of an authentication process in correlation with acamera setting;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating still another example of a databasethat stores a result of an authentication process in correlation with acamera setting;

FIG. 8 is a diagram exemplifying a configuration of an image processingsystem in a second example embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram illustrating a flow of a process until arecommended setting for each individual is accumulated in a recommendedsetting storage unit;

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of information stored inthe recommended setting storage unit; and

FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating a flow of a process ofcontrolling the camera by using a recommended setting for eachindividual.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention will be now described herein with reference toillustrative embodiments. Those skilled in the art will recognize thatmany alternative embodiments can be accomplished using the teachings ofthe present invention and that the invention is not limited to theexample embodiments illustrated for explanatory purposes.

An image processing system according to the present invention has afunction of automatically determining a camera setting (hereinafter,also referred to as a “recommended setting”) that is recommended for acamera generating an image (an image in which a person is captured) usedas an input of an authentication process for the person, and controllingthe camera on the basis of the determined recommended setting. It shouldbe noted that, in the present specification, the “camera setting”indicates a setting that influences at least one of an imaging range ofthe camera, the manner in which a subject (person) appears, and imagequality.

Specifically, the camera setting includes at least one of a posture (apan angle or a tilt angle), an imaging magnification, a length of anexposure time (shutter speed), luminance, saturation, an imagingresolution, and compression quality.

Hereinafter, example embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that thesame constituent element will be given the same reference numeralthroughout all the drawings, and a description thereof will not berepeated as appropriate. In each block diagram, each block represents aconfiguration in the functional unit instead of a configuration in thehardware unit unless particularly mentioned. A direction of an arrow inthe drawing is used to facilitate the understanding of a flow ofinformation, and does not limit a communication direction(unidirectional communication/bidirectional communication) unlessparticularly mentioned.

First Example Embodiment

<Functional Configuration of Information Processing Apparatus 10>

FIG. 1 is a diagram exemplifying a configuration of an image processingsystem 1 of a first example embodiment. The image processing system 1exemplified in FIG. 1 is configured to include an information processingapparatus 10 and a camera 20.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the information processing apparatus 10includes an authentication unit 110, an accumulation unit 120, arecommended setting determination unit 130, and a camera control unit140. The authentication unit 110 acquires an image generated by thecamera 20, and executes an authentication process for a person capturedin the image. The accumulation unit 120 correlates a score(authentication score) obtained in an authentication process using theimage in which the person is captured with a camera setting at which thecamera 20 generates the image, and accumulates the correlated result ina predetermined storage area. The recommended setting determination unit130 determines a recommended setting for the camera 20 on the basis ofthe information (a correspondence relationship between theauthentication score and the camera setting) accumulated in thepredetermined storage area.

The camera control unit 140 controls the camera 20 on the basis of therecommended setting determined by the recommended setting determinationunit 130.

<Hardware Configuration Example of Information Processing Apparatus 10>

Each functional configuration unit of the information processingapparatus 10 may be realized by hardware (a hard-wired electroniccircuit or the like) realizing each functional configuration unit, andmay be realized by a combination of hardware and software (for example,a combination of an electronic circuit and a program controlling theelectronic circuit). Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 2, adescription will be further made of a case where the informationprocessing apparatus 10 realizes each functional configuration unitthrough a combination of hardware and software. FIG. 2 is a blockdiagram exemplifying a hardware configuration of the informationprocessing apparatus 10.

The information processing apparatus 10 is configured to include acontrol board 1000. The control board 1000 includes a bus 1010, aprocessor 1020, a memory 1030, a storage device 1040, an input/outputinterface 1050, and a network interface 1060.

The bus 1010 is a data communication path through which the processor1020, the memory 1030, the storage device 1040, the input/outputinterface 1050, and the network interface 1060 transmit and receive datato and from each other. However, a method of coupling the processor 1020and the like to each other is not limited to bus coupling.

The processor 1020 is a processor configured with a central processingunit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), or the like.

The memory 1030 is a main storage device realized by a random accessmemory (RAM) or the like.

The storage device 1040 is an auxiliary storage device realized by ahard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a memory card, a readonly memory (ROM), or the like. The storage device 1040 stores a programmodule realizing each function (the authentication unit 110, theaccumulation unit 120, the recommended setting determination unit 130,the camera control unit 140, or the like) of the information processingapparatus 10. The processor 1020 reads each program module onto thememory 1030, and executes the program module, and thus the functioncorresponding to each program module is realized.

The input/output interface 1050 is an interface coupling the informationprocessing apparatus 10 to various input and output devices. Theinput/output interface 1050 may be coupled to an input device (notillustrated) such as a keyboard or a mouse, and an output device (notillustrated) such as a display or a speaker.

The network interface 1060 is an interface coupling the informationprocessing apparatus 10 to a network. The network is, for example, alocal area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN). A method in whichthe network interface 1060 is coupled to the network may be wirelesscoupling and may be wired coupling. In the example illustrated in FIG.2, the information processing apparatus 10 is coupled to the camera 20through the network interface 1060. The information processing apparatus10 may communicate with the camera 20 through the network interface1060, so as to acquire an image in which a person is captured and acamera setting related to the image. The information processingapparatus 10 may communicate with the camera 20 through the networkinterface 1060, so as to transmit information indicating a recommendedsetting for the camera 20 determined by the recommended settingdetermination unit 130 to the camera 20.

<Functional Configuration of Camera 20>

The camera 20 is provided to include a predetermined area in an imagingrange. The predetermined area includes, for example, a region in which agate for managing entrance and exit of a person is provided or a regionthat is set as a surveillance target area. The camera 20 images a personpresent in the predetermined area while changing a camera setting. Asexemplified in FIG. 1, the camera 20 includes a transmission unit 210, asetting changing unit 220, and an imaging unit 230. The imaging unit 230is a camera module including an imaging element and an optical systemsuch as a lens. The transmission unit 210 transmits an image in which aperson is captured, generated by using the imaging unit 230, and acamera setting at which the camera 20 (imaging unit 230) generates theimage, to the information processing apparatus 10 (external apparatus).The setting changing unit 220 acquires information (hereinafter,referred to as “recommended setting information”) indicating a camerasetting recommended in a case where the camera 20 (imaging unit 230)generates an image in which a person is captured, from the informationprocessing apparatus 10 (external apparatus). The setting changing unit220 changes a camera setting for the camera 20 (imaging unit 230) on thebasis of the recommended setting information acquired from theinformation processing apparatus 10.

<Hardware Configuration Example of Camera 20>

FIG. 3 is a block diagram exemplifying a hardware configuration of thecamera 20.

The camera 20 is configured to include a control board 2000. The controlboard 2000 includes a bus 2010, a processor 2020, a memory 2030, astorage device 2040, an input/output interface 2050, and a networkinterface 2060.

The bus 2010 is a data communication path through which the processor2020, the memory 2030, the storage device 2040, the input/outputinterface 2050, and the network interface 2060 transmit and receive datato and from each other. However, a method of coupling the processor 2020and the like to each other is not limited to bus coupling.

The processor 2020 is a processor realized by a central processing unit(CPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), or the like.

The memory 2030 is a main storage device realized by a random accessmemory (RAM) or the like.

The storage device 2040 is an auxiliary storage device realized by ahard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a memory card, a readonly memory (ROM), or the like. The storage device 2040 stores a programmodule realizing each function (the transmission unit 210, the settingchanging unit 220, and the imaging unit 230, or the like) of the camera20. The processor 2020 reads each program module onto the memory 2030,and executes the program module, and thus the function corresponding toeach program module is realized.

The input/output interface 2050 is an interface coupling the controlboard 2000 to various modules. As illustrated in FIG. 3, theinput/output interface 2050 is coupled to a camera module 2052 or thelike. The camera module 2052 is configured to include an imaging elementsuch as a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementarymetal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS), an image processing engine generatingimage data on the basis of an output signal from the imaging element,and mechanisms controlling a posture (a pan angle or a tilt angle) ofthe camera 20, an imaging magnification of the camera 20, and a shutterspeed of the camera 20.

The network interface 2060 is an interface coupling the camera 20 to anetwork. The network is, for example, a local area network (LAN) or awide area network (WAN). A method in which the network interface 2060 iscoupled to the network may be wireless coupling and may be wiredcoupling. In the example illustrated in FIG. 3, the camera 20 is coupledto the information processing apparatus 10 through the network interface2060. The camera 20 may communicate with the information processingapparatus 10 through the network interface 2060, so as to transmit animage in which a person is captured and a camera setting at which theimage is generated to the information processing apparatus 10. Thecamera 20 may communicate with the information processing apparatus 10through the network interface 2060, so as to acquire informationindicating a recommended setting for the camera 20 determined by therecommended setting determination unit 130.

<Flow of Process>

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram exemplifying a flow of a process executedby the image processing system 1 of the first example embodiment.

First, the camera 20 performs imaging while changing a camera setting(S102). The transmission unit 210 transmits an image generated throughthe process in S102 and information indicating a camera setting at whichthe image is generated, to the information processing apparatus 10(S104).

The authentication unit 110 executes an authentication process on aperson captured in the image by using the image acquired from the camera20 (S106). For example, the authentication unit 110 acquires an image inwhich a person passing through a gate for managing entrance to and exitfrom a specific region is captured, from the camera 20, and executes anauthentication process on the person captured in the image. For example,the authentication unit 110 acquires an image in which a person presentin a specific surveillance region (for example, a large-scale commercialfacility or an event hall) is captured from the camera 20, and executesan authentication process on the person captured in the image.

In the authentication process in S106, the authentication unit 110acquires information indicating an authenticated person and a certaintyfactor (authentication score) that the person captured in the image isthe authenticated person. Specifically, first, the authentication unit110 processes the image acquired from the camera 20 so as to extractplural keypoints (points indicating the eyes, the nose, and the mouse ofthe person), and obtains data indicating disposition of the keypoints.The authentication unit 110 compares the data indicating the dispositionof the keypoints with registered data that is registered in advance forpersonal authentication, and calculates a similarity between the piecesof data. The authentication unit 110 determines a person correspondingto registered data (in a case where there are plural pieces of data,registered data causing the highest similarity to be obtained) causing asimilarity of a predetermined reference value or greater to be obtainedas an “authenticated person”, and acquires the similarity as anauthentication score.

The accumulation unit 120 correlates results (the authenticated personand the authentication score) of the authentication process obtainedthrough the process in S106 with the camera setting, and accumulates acorrelated result in a predetermined storage area (S108). Theaccumulation unit 120 accumulates results (an authenticated person andan authentication score) of an authentication process using each imageand a camera setting, for example, in a database or the like built inthe storage device 1040.

The recommended setting determination unit 130 determines a recommendedsetting that is recommended in a case where the camera 20 generates animage on the basis of a correspondence relationship between theauthentication score and the camera setting accumulated in the storagearea (S110). Here, the recommended setting determination unit 130 mayexecute a process of determining a recommended setting at any timing.For example, the recommended setting determination unit 130 may beconfigured to determine a recommended setting by using the informationaccumulated in the database when a predetermined period elapses. Therecommended setting determination unit 130 may be configured todetermine a recommended setting by using the information accumulated inthe database in a case where a statistical value (for example, anaverage value) of an authentication score obtained through the previousauthentication process is smaller than a reference value for determiningwhether or not a camera setting is required to be updated. A recommendedsetting for the camera 20 is reconsidered periodically or in a stage inwhich a predetermined condition regarding an authentication score issatisfied, and thus the accuracy of generating an image causing afavorable authentication score to be obtained can be maintained.

Here, a description will be made of a flow in which the recommendedsetting determination unit 130 determines a recommended setting on thebasis of a correspondence relationship between an authentication scoreand a camera setting accumulated in the storage area. As an example, ina case where there is a single person as an authentication processtarget, or a person having an average physical feature is determined inadvance among authentication target persons, the recommended settingdetermination unit 130 may determine a camera setting causing thehighest authentication score with respect to the determined person, andmay determine the camera setting as a recommended setting for the camera20. As a specific example, a case is supposed in which information asexemplified in FIG. 5 is stored in the database. FIG. 5 is a diagramillustrating an example of a database storing a result of anauthentication process and a camera setting in correlation with eachother. The database exemplified in FIG. 5 stores a result of anauthentication process on a specific person (person A) in correlationwith an authentication score. In the example illustrated in FIG. 5, anauthentication score at a camera setting corresponding to “setting 7” isthe maximum value of “92”. In this case, the recommended settingdetermination unit 130 determines the camera setting corresponding to“setting 7” at which the authentication score is the maximum as arecommended setting for the camera 20.

As another example, in a case where plural persons are authenticationprocess targets, the recommended setting determination unit 130 maydetermine a camera setting at which authentication scores for the pluralpersons are equal to or more than a predetermined reference value byreferring to information accumulated in the database, and may determinethe camera setting as a recommended setting for the camera 20. As aspecific example, a case is supposed in which information as illustratedin FIG. 6 is stored in the database, and a predetermined reference valueregarding an authentication score is “70”. FIG. 6 is a diagramillustrating another example of a database storing a result of anauthentication process in correlation with a camera setting. In a caseof the example illustrated in FIG. 6, at a camera setting correspondingto “setting 1”, authentication scores for plural persons A to C areequal to or more than the predetermined reference value. On the otherhand, at a camera setting corresponding to “setting 2”, authenticationscores for the persons A and B are equal to or more than thepredetermined reference value, but an authentication score for theperson C is less than the predetermined reference value. In this case,the recommended setting determination unit 130 determines the camerasetting corresponding to “setting 1” as a recommended setting for thecamera 20.

It is assumed that information as illustrated in FIG. 7 is stored in thedatabase, and a predetermined reference value regarding anauthentication score is “70”. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating stillanother example of a database storing a result of an authenticationprocess in correlation with a camera setting. In the example illustratedin FIG. 7, at a camera setting corresponding to “setting 1” and a camerasetting corresponding to “setting 3”, authentication scores for thepersons A to C are a predetermined reference value. As mentioned above,in a case where there are plural camera setting candidates, therecommended setting determination unit 130 may be configured todetermine a recommended setting on the basis of a statisticallyprocessed value of authentication scores for plural persons. Forexample, in a case of the example illustrated in FIG. 7, at the camerasetting corresponding to “setting 1”, a total value of theauthentication scores for the persons A to C is “225”, and an averagevalue thereof is “75”. On the other hand, at the camera settingcorresponding to “setting 3”, a total value of the authentication scoresfor the persons A to C is “270”, and an average value thereof is “90”.In this case, the recommended setting determination unit 130 determines,as a recommended setting for the camera 20, the camera settingcorresponding to “setting 3” at which a statistically processed valuesuch as a total value or an average value is great.

Referring to FIG. 4 again, the camera control unit 140 generatesrecommended setting information indicating the recommended setting tothe camera 20 and transmits the recommended setting information to thecamera 20 such that a camera setting for the camera 20 is changed to therecommended setting determined through the process in S110 (S112). Therecommended setting information is information indicating a settingvalue recommended for at least one of a posture (a pan angle or a tiltangle) of the camera 20, an imaging magnification, a length of anexposure time (shutter speed), luminance, saturation, an imagingresolution, and compression quality. The camera control unit 140 maytransmit the recommended setting information to the camera 20 so as tocontrol at least one of a posture (a pan angle or a tilt angle) of thecamera 20, an imaging magnification of the camera 20, a length of anexposure time (shutter speed) of the camera 20, luminance, saturation,an imaging resolution, and compression quality.

In a case where the recommended setting information is acquired from theinformation processing apparatus 10, the setting changing unit 220changes the camera setting for the camera 20 to the recommended settingindicated by the recommended setting information (S114). Specifically,the setting changing unit 220 controls a mechanism controlling a posture(a pan angle or a tilt angle) of the camera 20, a mechanism controllingan imaging magnification of the camera 20, a mechanism controlling ashutter speed of the camera 20, or an image processing engine (a portioncontrolling luminance, saturation, an imaging resolution, compressionquality, and the like) generating an image on the basis of an outputsignal from the imaging element, according to the camera settingindicated by the recommended setting information acquired from theinformation processing apparatus 10. Consequently, at least one of theposture of the camera 20, the imaging magnification, the length of anexposure time (shutter speed), the luminance, the saturation, theimaging resolution, and the compression quality is changed in accordancewith the recommended setting.

<Advantageous Effects>

In the present example embodiment, first, a score (authentication score)obtained through an authentication process using an image and a camerasetting for the camera 20 at which the image is generated areaccumulated in a storage area in correlation with each other. A camerasetting (recommended setting) for the camera 20 recommended to generatean image causing an authentication result with a high certainty factorto be obtained is determined on the basis of the information accumulatedin the storage area as mentioned above, and a notification thereof issent to the camera 20. A camera setting for the camera 20 isautomatically changed to the recommended setting. In other words,adjustment work for the camera 20 for obtaining an image suitable for anauthentication process is automated. According to the configuration ofthe present example embodiment, an effect of reducing a work load duringintroduction of a system can be expected for a manager of the imageprocessing system 1. Since human cost is reduced by reducing a work loadduring introduction of a system, and thus the image processing system 1can be provided at low cost, an effect of promoting the use of the imageprocessing system 1 can also be expected.

<Modification Examples>

In a case where the camera 20 is a so-called intelligent camera mountedwith a processor for image processing, at least some of processing unitsof the information processing apparatus 10 may be provided in the camera20. For example, the camera 20 (intelligent camera) includes aprocessing unit (a processing unit corresponding to the authenticationunit 110) executing an authentication process using a face image, andthe information processing apparatus 10 may include the accumulationunit 120, the recommended setting determination unit 130, and the cameracontrol unit 140. In this case, the processing unit corresponding to theauthentication unit 110 provided in the camera 20 executes anauthentication process by using an image, and the information processingapparatus 10 acquires an authentication score obtained through theauthentication process and a camera setting from the camera 20, andaccumulates the authentication score and the camera setting in thestorage device 1040 or the like. The information processing apparatus 10determines a recommended setting on the basis of the accumulatedinformation (a combination of the authentication score and the camerasetting), and notifies the camera 20 of the recommended setting. Withthis configuration, the effects can also be achieved.

The recommended setting determination unit 130 may be configured todetermine a recommended setting for each temporal condition based on anoperation timing (a timing at which an image is generated by the camera20) of the camera 20. For example, the recommended setting determinationunit 130 may be configured to determine a recommended setting for eachseason, a recommended setting for each time period, a recommendedsetting for each month or each day of the week, or the like, on thebasis of an operation timing (a timing at which an image is generated bythe camera 20) of the camera 20. In the above-described way, it ispossible to absorb a difference between recommended settings due to adifference in environmental light (light received by the imaging elementof the camera 20) according to a time period or a season, and thus tostably achieve the effects.

Second Example Embodiment

So-called multi-factor authentication may be employed in which biometricauthentication using a physical feature of a person such as a face imageis combined with knowledge authentication using knowledge such as apassword that only the person himself/herself knows or possessionauthentication using only the person's possession such as an IC card. Inthe present example embodiment, a description will be made of an exampleof a configuration of an image processing system 1 in a case where themulti-factor authentication is employed. The present example embodimentis the same as the first example embodiment except for the followingdescription.

<Functional Configuration Example>

FIG. 8 is a diagram exemplifying a configuration of the image processingsystem 1 of a second example embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 8, theimage processing system 1 of the present example embodiment isconfigured to include an information processing apparatus 10, a camera20, and a reading apparatus 30. The reading apparatus 30 is an apparatusreading an IC card 40 storing information for identifying each person(personal identification information).

The recommended setting determination unit 130 of the present exampleembodiment determines a recommended setting for the camera 20 for eachperson on the basis of a correspondence relationship between anauthentication score and a camera setting, and stores the recommendedsetting for each person in a recommended setting storage unit 132. Thecamera control unit 140 of the present example embodiment is operated asfollows. First, the camera control unit 140 acquires personalidentification information that is read from the IC card 40 by thereading apparatus 30. The camera control unit 140 determines arecommended setting corresponding to the acquired personalidentification information among recommended settings for each personstored in the recommended setting storage unit 132. The camera controlunit 140 controls the camera 20 on the basis of the determinedrecommended setting. <Flow of process>

FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram illustrating a flow of a process until arecommended setting for each person is accumulated in the recommendedsetting storage unit 132.

First, the camera 20 performs imaging while changing a camera setting(S202). The transmission unit 210 transmits an image generated throughthe process in S202 and information indicating a camera setting at whichthe image is generated, to the information processing apparatus 10(S204). The authentication unit 110 executes an authentication processon a person captured in the image by using the image acquired from thecamera 20 (S206). The accumulation unit 120 correlates results (theauthenticated person and the authentication score) of the authenticationprocess obtained through the process in S206 with the camera setting,and accumulates a correlated result in a predetermined storage area(S208). The recommended setting determination unit 130 determines arecommended setting that is recommended in a case where the camera 20generates an image on the basis of a correspondence relationship betweenthe authentication score and the camera setting accumulated in thestorage area (S210). The processes in S202 to S210 are the same as theprocesses in S102 to S110 in FIG. 4.

The recommended setting determination unit 130 correlates personalidentification information allocated to the person authenticated throughthe authentication process in S206 with information indicating therecommended setting determined in S210, and stores the correlated resultin a storage area such as the storage device 1040 (S212). Consequently,information indicating a recommended setting for each person is storedin a storage area such as the storage device 1040 (for example, FIG.10). FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of information storedin the recommended setting storage unit 132. Information exemplified inFIG. 10 indicates that a camera setting for the camera 20 recommended ina case where a person A is imaged is “setting 1”, a camera setting forthe camera 20 recommended in a case where a person

B is imaged is “setting 2”, and a camera setting for the camera 20recommended in a case where a person C is imaged is “setting 3”.

FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating a flow of a process ofcontrolling the camera 20 by using a recommended setting for eachperson.

First, the reading apparatus 30 performs short-range radio communicationwith the IC card 40, reads personal identification information stored inthe IC card 40, and transmits the personal identification information tothe information processing apparatus 10 (S302 and S304).

The camera control unit 140 determines a recommended setting on thebasis of the personal identification information acquired from thereading apparatus 30 (S306). For example, a case is supposed in whichinformation as illustrated in FIG. 10 is stored in the recommendedsetting storage unit 132. In this case, when the personal identificationinformation acquired through the process in S304 is informationindicating the person A, the camera control unit 140 may determine thecamera setting corresponding to “setting 1” as a recommended setting forthe person on the basis of the information exemplified in FIG. 10. Thecamera control unit 140 transmits recommended setting informationindicating the recommended setting for each person determined throughthe process in S306 to the camera 20 (S308).

When the recommended setting information is acquired from theinformation processing apparatus 10, the setting changing unit 220changes a camera setting for the camera 20 to the recommended settingindicated by the recommended setting information (S310). For example, ina case where the recommended setting information acquired through theprocess in S308 indicates the recommended setting (the camera settingcorresponding to “setting 1”) for the person A, the setting changingunit 220 changes a camera setting for the camera 20 to the recommendedsetting (the camera setting corresponding to “setting 1”) for the personA.

<Advantageous Effects>

As mentioned above, in the present example embodiment, in a case where acertain person is authenticated on the basis of personal identificationinformation acquired from the IC card 40 or the like, a camera setting(recommended setting for each person) for the camera 20 recommended in acase where the person is imaged is determined. A camera setting for thecamera 20 is controlled on the basis of the determined recommendedsetting. According to the configuration of the present exampleembodiment, an optimal camera setting for each person can be read andapplied. Consequently, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of aproblem that an optimal camera setting for a certain person is notsuitable for another person. In other words, it is possible to expect aneffect of increasing the overall accuracy of authentication by reducinga false rejection rate in a biometric authentication process.

As mentioned above, the example embodiments of the present inventionhave been described with reference to the drawings, but are notconstrued to be limited thereto, and may be variously modified oraltered on the basis of the knowledge of a person skilled in the artwithout departing from the concept of the present invention. The pluralconstituent elements described in the example embodiments may implementvarious inventions through appropriate combinations. For example, someconstituent elements may be deleted from all of the constituent elementsdescribed in the example embodiments, and may be combined with aconstituent element of a separate example embodiment as appropriate.

Plural steps (processes) are sequentially described in the sequencediagram used in the description, but an execution order of stepsexecuted in each example embodiment is not limited to the describedorder. In each example embodiment, an order of the illustrated steps maybe changed within the scope without contradiction to contents thereof.

Some or all of the above-described example embodiments may be disclosedas in the following appendix, but are not limited thereto.

1. An information processing apparatus including:

an accumulation unit that accumulates a score obtained through anauthentication process using an image in which a person is captured anda camera setting at which a camera generates the image in a storagearea;

a recommended setting determination unit that determines a recommendedsetting for the camera on the basis of a correspondence relationshipbetween the score and the camera setting; and

a camera control unit that controls the camera on the basis of therecommended setting.

2. The information processing apparatus according to 1.,

in which the camera control unit controls at least one of a posture ofthe camera, an imaging magnification of the camera, a length of anexposure time of the camera, luminance, saturation, an imagingresolution, and compression quality.

3. The information processing apparatus according to 1. or 2.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines thecamera setting at which the score is highest as the recommended setting.

4. The information processing apparatus according to 1. or 2.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines thecamera setting at which the score for each of plural persons is equal toor more than a predetermined reference value as the recommended setting.

5. The information processing apparatus according to 4.,

in which, in a case where there are the plural camera settings at whichthe score for each of the plural persons is equal to or more than thepredetermined reference value, the recommended setting determinationunit determines the recommended setting by using a statisticallyprocessed value of the scores calculated for each camera setting.

6. The information processing apparatus according to any one of 1. to5.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines therecommended setting for each predetermined period.

7. The information processing apparatus according to any one of 1. to6.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines therecommended setting for each temporal condition based on an operationtiming of the camera.

8. The information processing apparatus according to any one of 1. to7., further including:

an authentication unit that executes the authentication process.

9. The information processing apparatus according to 8.,

in which the authentication unit executes the authentication process ona person passing through a gate provided in a predetermined area.

10. A camera control method executed by a computer, the methodincluding:

-   -   accumulating a score obtained through an authentication process        on a person captured in an image and a camera setting at which a        camera generates the image in a storage area;    -   determining a recommended setting for the camera on the basis of        a correspondence relationship between the score and the camera        setting accumulated in the storage area; and    -   controlling the camera on the basis of the recommended setting.

11. The camera control method executed by a computer according to 10.,the method further including:

causing the computer to control at least one of a posture of the camera,an imaging magnification of the camera, a length of an exposure time ofthe camera, luminance, saturation, an imaging resolution, andcompression quality.

12. The camera control method executed by a computer according to 10. or11., the method further including:

causing the computer to determine the camera setting at which the scoreis highest as the recommended setting.

13. The camera control method executed by a computer according to 10. or11., the method further including:

causing the computer to determine the camera setting at which the scorefor each of plural persons is equal to or more than a predeterminedreference value as the recommended setting.

14. The camera control method executed by a computer according to 13.,the method further including:

causing the computer to determine the recommended setting by using astatistically processed value of the scores calculated for each camerasetting in a case where there are the plural camera settings at whichthe score for each of the plural persons is equal to or more than thepredetermined reference value.

15. The camera control method executed by a computer according to anyone of 10. to 14., the method further including:

causing the computer to determine the recommended setting for eachpredetermined period.

16. The camera control method executed by a computer according to anyone of 10. to 15., the method further including:

causing the computer to determine the recommended setting for eachtemporal condition based on an operation timing of the camera.

17. The camera control method executed by a computer according to anyone of 10. to 16., the method further including:

causing the computer to execute the authentication process.

18. The camera control method executed by a computer according to 17.,the method further including:

causing the computer to execute the authentication process on a personpassing through a gate provided in a predetermined area.

19. A program causing a computer to execute the camera control methodaccording to any one of 10. to 18.

20. A camera including:

a transmission unit that transmits an image in which a person iscaptured and a camera setting at which the camera generates the image toan external apparatus; and a setting changing unit that acquiresrecommended setting information indicating a camera setting recommendedin a case where the camera generates an image from the externalapparatus, and changes the camera setting for the camera on the basis ofthe recommended setting information.

21. An image processing system including:

a camera that generates an image in which a person is captured whilechanging a camera setting;

an authentication unit that executes an authentication process by usingthe image;

an accumulation unit that accumulates a score obtained through theauthentication process and a camera setting at which the cameragenerates the image in a storage area;

a recommended setting determination unit that determines a recommendedsetting for the camera on the basis of a correspondence relationshipbetween the score and the camera setting accumulated in the storagearea; and

a camera control unit that controls the camera on the basis of therecommended setting.

22. The image processing system according to 21.,

in which the camera control unit controls at least one of a posture ofthe camera, an imaging magnification of the camera, a length of anexposure time of the camera, luminance, saturation, an imagingresolution, and compression quality.

23. The image processing system according to 21. or 22.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines thecamera setting at which the score is highest as the recommended setting.

24. The image processing system according to 21. or 22.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines thecamera setting at which the score for each of plural persons is equal toor more than a predetermined reference value as the recommended setting.

25. The image processing system according to 24.,

in which, in a case where there are the plural camera settings at whichthe score for each of the plural persons is equal to or more than thepredetermined reference value, the recommended setting determinationunit determines the recommended setting by using a statisticallyprocessed value of the scores calculated for each camera setting.

26. The image processing system according to any one of 21. to 25.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines therecommended setting for each predetermined period.

27. The image processing system according to any one of 21. to 26.,

in which the recommended setting determination unit determines therecommended setting for each temporal condition based on an operationtiming of the camera.

28. The image processing system according to any one of 21. to 27.,further including:

an authentication unit that executes the authentication process.

29. The image processing system according to 28.,

in which the authentication unit executes the authentication process ona person passing through a gate provided in a predetermined area.

It is apparent that the present invention is not limited to the aboveexample embodiment, and may be modified and changed without departingfrom the scope and spirit of the invention.

It is apparent that the present invention is not limited to the aboveembodiment, and may be modified and changed without departing from thescope and spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus comprising: amemory configured to store instructions; and at least one processorconfigured to execute the instructions to perform: accumulating, in astorage area, a score obtained through an authentication process usingan image in which a person is captured and a camera setting at which acamera generates the image, the score indicating a certainty factor thatthe person in the image is an authenticated person in the authenticationprocess; determining a recommended setting for the camera on the basisof a correspondence relationship between the score and the camerasetting; and controlling the camera on the basis of the recommendedsetting.
 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the certainty factor is based on a similarity calculated bycomparing the image of the person captured by the camera and registereddata for a plurality of people.
 3. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured toexecute the instructions to perform: acquiring personal identificationinformation read by a reading apparatus; and determining, as therecommend setting, a setting associated with a person identified by thepersonal identification information.
 4. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to execute the instructions to control an attribute of thecamera including at least one of a posture of the camera, an imagingmagnification of the camera, a length of an exposure time of the camera,a luminance value, a saturation value, an imaging resolution, and acompression quality.
 5. The information processing apparatus accordingto claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to execute theinstructions to determine, as the recommended setting, a camera settingat which the score is highest.
 6. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured toexecute the instructions to determine, as the recommended setting, acamera setting at which the scores for a plurality of persons are equalto or more than a predetermined reference value.
 7. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein, the processor isfurther configured to execute the instructions to determine, in a casewhere there are a plurality of camera settings at which the scores forthe plurality of persons are equal to or more than the predeterminedreference value, the recommended setting by using a statisticallyprocessed value of the scores calculated for each of the plurality ofcamera settings.
 8. The information processing apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to execute theinstructions to determine the recommended setting when a predeterminedperiod elapses.
 9. The information processing apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to execute theinstructions to determine the recommended setting based on a temporalcondition according to an operational timing of the camera.
 10. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein theprocessor is further configured to execute the instructions to executethe authentication process.
 11. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured toexecute the instructions to execute the authentication process on aperson passing through a gate provided in a predetermined area.
 12. Acamera control method executed by a computer, the method comprising:accumulating, in a storage area, a score obtained through anauthentication process using an image in which a person is captured anda camera setting at which a camera generates the image, the scoreindicating a certainty factor that the person in the image is anauthenticated person in the authentication process; determining arecommended setting for the camera on the basis of a correspondencerelationship between the score and the camera setting; and controllingthe camera on the basis of the recommended setting,
 13. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the certainty factoris based on a similarity calculated by comparing the image of the personcaptured by the camera and registered data for a plurality of people.14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12, whereinthe method further comprises: acquiring personal identificationinformation read by a reading apparatus; and determining, as therecommend setting, a setting associated with a person identified by thepersonal identification information.
 15. A non-transitory computerreadable medium storing a program causing a computer to execute a cameracontrol method, the method comprising: accumulating, in a storage area,a score obtained through an authentication process using an image inwhich a person is captured and a camera setting at which a cameragenerates the image, the score indicating a certainty factor that theperson in the image is an authenticated person in the authenticationprocess; determining a recommended setting for the camera on the basisof a correspondence relationship between the score and the camerasetting; and controlling the camera on the basis of the recommendedsetting,
 16. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15,wherein the certainty factor is based on a similarity calculated bycomparing the image of the person captured by the camera and registereddata for a plurality of people.
 17. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 15, wherein the method further comprises: acquiringpersonal identification information read by a reading apparatus; anddetermining, as the recommend setting, a setting associated with aperson identified by the personal identification information.